Seven retains free-to-air rights for NFL in Australia
Despite a delay which led to speculation the broadcaster had ended its regular agreement with the National Football League (NFL), Seven has confirmed it has renewed its coverage rights and will be the free-to-air partner for the current 2019/20 season of the NFL.
The agreement gives Seven the broadcast rights on both its primary channel and multi-channel 7Mate. Seven will broadcast two live games each week in the season and the NFL playoffs on 7Mate.
The much-hyped Super Bowl will air live on Seven’s primary channel.
Seven’s head of sport, Saul Shtein, said: “The biggest stage in American sport is the NFL and it throws up the biggest names and stories each and every year. We’re very proud to bring it to our viewers, alongside our coverage of the major summer and winters sports in Australia.”
Under the new agreement, the broadcaster has expanded its digital rights, bringing NFL highlights, VOD content and a digital simulcast of the NFL broadcast to 7Plus and 7news.com.au.
The NFL is one of the richest and most-watched sports in the US, with each team thought to be worth around US$2.9bn.
Australian fans will also be able to watch a selection of NFL programs on 7Mate which will take them behind the scenes of the sport and into its history.
This year it’s expected Australians Michael Dickson, Cameron Johnson and Mitch Wishnowsky will all feature in the season, along with Jordan Mailata and ex-rugby league player Valentine Holmes.
Seven first became the broadcast partner of the NFL in the 2014/15 season, with the network reporting a growth of 55% in FTA TV audience for the sport and a 40% jump in ratings since that time.
Seven also currently holds broadcast rights for the AFL, a large portion of horse racing coverage and the cricket after taking it from Nine and Ten last year. In that time, Seven also lost the rights to the tennis.